Sarkozy to Meet Obama in March

PARIS - French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy will make an official visit to Washington on March 30 at the invitation of US President Barack Obama, the Elysee said Tuesday.

The visit will involve a working meeting, a joint press conference and a private dinner, the French presidency said in a statement.

Sarkozy will meet with business leaders and the US press in New York before going to Washington, it added.

A White House statement said Obama "looks forward to consulting with President Sarkozy on a broad range of issues of mutual concern including Afghanistan and Pakistan, Iran, Middle East peace efforts, European security cooperation and global economic recovery.

"France is an invaluable partner and ally of the United States in our shared efforts to promote peace, security and prosperity around the world," it added.

Sarkozy has already made several official trips to the United States, despite persistent reports that he and Obama do not get along well on a personal level.

The US leader has come to France twice since his election, to a NATO summit and to last year's June 6 D-Day commemoration, but on each trip his one-on-one encounters with Sarkozy have been perfunctory.